Does this mean gold is twice as tougher as silver ?

Question

the density of gold is 19320kg/m3 and the density of silver is 10490kg/m3. Does that mean that gold is twice as strong as silver

Answer 1

strength is independent of density. It depends on the molecular forces and arrangement of the atoms in the solid.

Answer 2

No, it does not.   Toughness and strength are only slightly related to density.   Gold is actually quite weak -- that is why gold jewelry is only partly gold, up to 92%.  The rest is silver, zinc, copper, and palladium.  This makes the jewelry much stronger.

Silver jewelry is 92.5% silver or more.

Answer 3

No it means a block of gold is heavier than a block of silver the same size.

Gold is very soft, it has a Young's modulus of 78 GPa.   Silver's Young's modulus is 83 GPa.

By comparison, bronze is 103 - 124 GPa.

Grandpa